Food Development Chef

Salary: Over £70,000 – flexible for the right chef
Location: London
Focus: 70% Food Development & R&D | 30% Events

Are you completely obsessed with food?

I’m recruiting a Food Development Chef for a premium London events business, leading the creation of new dishes, menus and culinary concepts.

You could come from Michelin-starred or AA Rosette restaurants, fine dining, luxury hotels, private dining, executive hospitality or premium events . We’re open on sector; what matters is exceptional food, technical ability, creativity and a real understanding of ingredients.

Salary & Benefits

• Over £70,000, with flexibility for the right chef
• 80% Monday to Friday – 8AM to 4PM
• Huge creative scope and room to progress
• Company pension, holiday allowance and staff meals

The Operation

• Premium events and catering for high-profile and VIP clients.
• Bespoke canapés, bowl food and fine-dining menus.
• Regular client tastings.
• High-volume production and live event delivery.

The Role

• Spend around 70% of your time on food development and R&D , with 30% supporting events.
• Create dishes and concepts, taking them from initial ideas through to live delivery.
• Lead client tastings, confidently explaining the ingredients, provenance and thinking behind each dish.
• Develop recipes, specifications and plating standards.
• Make sure menus work commercially and retain their quality at scale.
• Inspire and develop the wider culinary team.

About You

• Strong experience producing sophisticated, high-quality food.
• Confident creating dishes and developing menus.
• Exceptional attention to flavour, technique and presentation.
• Curious about seasonality, sourcing, provenance and sustainability.
• Engaging and comfortable presenting to VIP clients.
• Commercially aware, with an understanding of costing and production.
• Open to chefs moving into development from an operational kitchen role.

You’ll be the chef who wants to know where an ingredient came from, who produced it and why it’s right for the dish - and who can share that enthusiasm with a client.

If you want more space to develop ideas, explore ingredients and shape the food offer, I’d love to hear from you.

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